


Problems with the post

by alexwlchan



Category: The Railway Series - W. Awdry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-05
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:34:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24019828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexwlchan/pseuds/alexwlchan
Summary: The thing about being a secret organisation is that your address is, well, secret.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 5





	Problems with the post

**Author's Note:**

> Sequel to [Ghost trains at Watford](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24007303)
> 
> People on Twitter suggested I create a new fandom, and rather than replying in a single tweet I decided to go way overboard as usual.

Isla pulled up her chair, and sat down at her desk. The train had been quiet this morning. Quieter than usual. If you asked, she'd pretend not to know why, and you might even believe her. Isla was very good at noticing things and then pretending she hadn't, which is why she worked for the Bureau of Incidents and Abnormalities on the Railway (BIAR). Being able to notice paranormal events and then act as if everything was fine was a useful skill in that line of work.

She'd just taken a bite of her slightly-too-dry breakfast pastry, when her co-worker Sara sat down at her desk opposite.

"Morning Sara."

"Morning Isla."

She could see Sara was holding a bundle of letters, and she knew what was coming. She put down her pastry, and braced herself for a conversation she'd had dozens of times before.

Sara let out a long, dramatic sigh that anybody but them could see was a shameless play for attention.

"What's the matter?", Isla asked, pretending she didn't know already.

"It's just … these letters are addressed to the RAIB, and that's not where we work. Don't people know the RAIB and the BIRA are different?"

"Well, I mean probab—", Isla tried to interject.

"It's really not that difficult to get the name right. B–I–A–R. It's four letters. You wouldn’t misspell somebody’s name, you wouldn’t write in crayon, you wouldn’t forget a stamp, so why do people keep mixing the name up?"

(Isla was in fact quite used to people misspelling her name – and Sara was a regular culprit – but she thought now was a bad time to mention that.)

“I mean, do people even want our help? Look at this one – they're written a letter all the way from Zürich, wanting help with a vampire infestation, and they send it to an organisation that handles derailed carriages and level crossing faults? I mean _really_.” Sara gave another dramatic sigh, and started to read the letters properly.

Alice knew perfectly well why the letters were addressed to the RAIB. The thing about being a secret organisation is that your address is, well, secret. Only a handful of people knew the BIAR existed, so letters had to be addressed to RAIB first and then forwarded on. She'd explained this to Sara plenty of times, but who let logic get in the way of a good rant?

She turned back to her screen, and started to read her email.


End file.
